Olympians recall '60 thrills at Squaw Valley

Jan. 15, 2010

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A CLOSER LOOK

o About 20 Olympians were Honored at the 1960 Nordic Olympian Dinnero Memorabilia including original jackets by the U.S. team were displayedo Among the keynote speakers include 1960 cross country coach Joe Pete Wilson

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TAHOE CITY — John Bishop was chatting with his old ski patrol buddies from Squaw Valley, laughing about the cherished memories from the 1960 Winter Olympics.

One of the crazier moments was when Bishop was patrolling the ski jump competition, where athletes fly off a jump trying to get the most distance.

One of the Japanese skiers, who weighed about 120 pounds, flew into the air, but got caught by a huge gust of wind, flew sideways out of the landing area and crashed into a fence.

“Fortunately he wasn’t injured,” Bishop said with a chuckle. “It was really funny to see, the wind just picked him up and threw him. It was quite the sight. Unfortunately he was disqualified.”

About 200 people gathered Friday night for the 1960 Nordic Olympian Dinner held at the Granlibakken Resort in Tahoe City, sharing stories about celebrating the 1960 Olympic games held at Squaw Valley.

The dinner and cocktail party recounted the events of the games with two large screens projecting historic photos and a video presentation.

Looking backAmong those exchanging stories was author Dave Antonucci, who wrote the book “Snowball’s Chance,” a story recapping the 1960 games. Athletes and enthusiasts parked it at his station where he was selling the books and discussed the events.

Antonucci, a retired civil engineer, wrote the book after he moved to the area and found out cross country ski races were held practically in his backyard.He later became interested when told the original cross country course was supposed to be held near the valley, but the land approved by the International Olympic Committee was already subdivided and houses were built.

“The organizers were horrified when they saw that,” Antonucci said. “They knew about some land on the west shore that was actually superior land.”

Gold medalistsIn addition, members of the U.S. ice hockey team also attended.Paul Johnson, a center for both the 1956 and 1960 Olympic team, led the team to a huge victory over the heavily-favored Canadian team in the early rounds. The Americans went on to beat the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia to win the gold.

“The Canadians were supposed to win, but we thought we had a good club,” said Johnson, who now resides in St. Paul, Minn. “The Canadians are still mad about that game.” Most of the attendees said the experience being back to Squaw Valley with friends and fellow competitors enriched the memories.

Bishop had two of his ski patrol buddies at his table and said most of them still keep in touch. One of the topics was when they had to take snow from the trucks coming in and lay it on the various runs. The snowpack in the weeks leading up to the games wasn’t ideal, and Bishop said that it was a pain getting the snow settled.

Bishop, who lives in Carmichael, Calif., a suburb of Sacramento, loved the experience being outdoors and at the event.He liked it so much he remained a ski patrol member at Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows Ski Resort for 40 years, retiring about five years ago.

“This event has brought back a whole lot of memories,” Bishop said. “It was a really special time.”